1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved backboard for transporting a patient.
2. Prior Art
Backboards may be used to transport patients who have suffered severe trauma, such as a spinal cord injury, that may develop into partial or total paralysis if the patient is moved improperly. Therefore, it is imperative that backboards have sufficient rigidity with a low rate of deflection and not flex or bend under the patient's weight in order to prevent unnecessary patient movement. To further minimize the patient's movement, it may be desirable that the patient remain on the backboard when being X-rayed at a treatment center. However, if the patient remains on the backboard when being X-rayed, the backboard must be substantially X-ray translucent in order to enable a high quality, medically acceptable X-ray of the patient to be obtained.
However, prior art backboards either have a high degree of X-ray translucence while not being substantially stable, or are structurally stable without being sufficiently X-ray translucent. In particular, backboards of the prior art that are completely planar on both sides have a high degree of X-ray translucence, but are not sufficiently rigid when supporting a patient due to a lack of structural supporting members located within the board. Other prior art backboards may provide structural strength by providing supporting members within the backboard or by molding a series of ridges into the bottom side of the backboard. Although these design features provide structural rigidity, the stiffening rods and/or molded ribs appear on X-rays and can adversely affect the backboard's X-ray translucence.
Therefore, there appears a need in the art for a backboard that is lightweight, cost effective to manufacture, and sufficiently rigid to adequately support a patient while being substantially X-ray translucent.